Expert-Novice Differences in Reading and Predicting Visual Information in Air Traffic Control

Many studies have shown that having perception of spatial information is important for air traffic control officer (ATCO) since it helps them understand the current situation and predict the situation it leads to. However, little or no research has been done to investigate if there is any difference at the levels of expertise in perceiving spatial information and predicting a prospective situation. This study investigates the difference between expert and novice ATCO groups in how accurately each group of ATCO perceive spatial information such as position, altitude, speed, and flying direction, and predicting such information they will encounter shortly. In completing a task to watch the movement of airplanes displayed on the computer monitor as a blip, the participants were asked to predict the position, speed, and the altitude of the aircraft in a minute by marking on the sector map. The results show that the expert group performed better in accuracy and had tendency to overestimate on position and altitude; however, no significant difference was found between the two groups in terms of reading a flying direction. Therefore reading a flying direction may not be a reliable indicator to judge expertise of ATCO. But the expert group shows better predicting performance by perceiving spatial information such as airplane's position and altitude with feeling on time. The study suggests that it is important to enhance perceptive skills in ATCO training in improving their expertise in predicting accuracy traffic situation, preventing from air collision, and improving productivity for more efficient air traffic flow. A further study on the relationship between the perception of spatial information and the sense of time in predicting future information and effectiveness as an independent factor would contribute to providing more insights into expertise of ATCOs.

항공관제 전문성 수준에 따른 시각정보 판독과 미래정보 예측 차이